Brazilian culture is so much more than soccer and Samba, and Brazilian cinema in particular has long gone tragically overlooked.
It's for this reason that we are excited to partner with ImageNation on Thursday, December 6 for a celebration of the diversity of Brazilian art, aptly titled Celebrate Brazil. This exciting event features a live performance by innovative singer-songwriter Beatriz Azevedo, a exhibition of photos and video work by Andre Cypriano, Cannon Hersey and Nefertiti Strong, and a screening of Cannes Film Festival selection 5x Favela: Now by Ourselves, which comprises five short films written, directed, and acted by promising artists from the favelas of Rio de Janeiro.
Despite the breakout success of City of God in 2002, Brazilian cinema is largely unknown to American audiences. The film—exotic, dangerous, colorful—speaks to a certain image that Brazil holds in the collective imagination, but rather than the "definitive" Brazilian film, it is merely one point of entry to the country's vast and rich filmography. For experimental cinema, try Cinema Novo, an influential new wave that arose in the 60s and 70s that included notable directors Glauber Rocha, Carlos Diegues and Nelson Pereira dos Santos. On the other end of the artistic spectrum are the B-grade chanchada softcore porn comedies that were common in the 70s.
The 80s saw the success of blockbuster Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands and Hector Babenco's chilling social drama Pixote, among others. After a national economic crisis saw Brazilian film production practically end in the early 90s due to a lack of state funding, the historical drama Carlota Joaquina, Princess of Brazil paved the way for a rapidly growing film industry led by the likes of Walter Salles and José Padilha. And don't get us started on the rich tradition of Brazilian documentaries—even harder to find outside of the country—which includes the seminal work Twenty Years Later by master filmmaker Eduardo Coutinho.
So, we're curious... What's your favorite Brazlian film and why? Email us your answer at contest@filmlinc.com or post it in the comments below with your name and email by Thursday, December 6 at noon for a chance to win a pair of tickets to Thursday's event! We'll announce the randomly chosen winner(s) by 2:00pm.